Voice & Tone
Write like a knowledgeable colleague talking shop, not a press release. Clear, direct, easy to move through. Every piece should signal the organization knows its field cold. Even a routine topic earns a reason to keep reading.
Style Standards
Default to AP Style and Merriam-Webster for anything not covered here. The rules below are the house exceptions. Where a section conflicts with AP, the section wins.
Capitalization Rules
- Capitalize a title only when it sits directly in front of the name. "Operations Director Bobbi Baldwin" takes the capital. "the operations director signed off" does not.
- Product names, service names and the newsletter title are always capitalized.
- Titles of published works follow standard title case.
Punctuation
- Skip the Oxford comma. "design, build and ship" not "design, build, and ship."
- Hyphenate compound modifiers that sit before the noun. "a well-run launch" but "a launch that was well run."
- Commas and periods stay inside the quotation marks. He said, "we shipped early."
- Use "said," not "says," when reporting in past tense.
Numbers
- Headlines: numerals for every number. "3 Fixes That Stuck" not "Three Fixes That Stuck."
- Body copy: spell out numbers below 10, numerals for 10 and up. "four sites piloted it" but "40 sites followed."
- Dollar amounts: always numerals. "$640,000" not "six hundred forty thousand dollars."
- Percentages: always numerals with the symbol. "63%" not "sixty-three percent."
The No-Fly List
Words and phrases that never make it to publish. Each one either drags in baggage or works against how the organization wants to be read.
Do NOT use: spying language for everyday tools ("watching staff," "keeping tabs on people")
Instead use: what the tool actually does ("route planning," "crew check-ins," "status updates")
Do NOT use: "family" to describe the workforce
Instead use: "team." Family signals obligation with no limits.
Do NOT use: "corporate" as a stand-in for leadership
Instead use: "HQ," "the home office" or name the leaders directly
Do NOT use: casual nicknames for real roles
Use the actual title. "Fleet Operations Lead" not "the truck guy." "Client Success Manager" not "the rep."
Do NOT use: blanket reach claims with no proof ("everywhere," "coast to coast")
Instead use: real numbers. "in 14 markets" or "across every site"
Do NOT use: "synergy," "best-in-class," "world-class," "cutting-edge"
Describe what it does. If a buzzword is the only way you can describe it, you don't understand it yet.
Do NOT use: "stakeholder alignment," "circle back," "touch base"
Name who and name what. "Finance reviews it Thursday."
Approval Process
1
Writer builds the outline
3
Draft built with the subject matter expert
5
Senior editor checks tone, voice and style
Every step protects voice, accuracy and standards before anything reaches the audience.